Lab Team
Dil Thavarajah
PI, Professor of Pulse Quality and Nutritional Breeding, Plant and Environmental Sciences, CAFLS, Clemson University
Sri Lanka, Saskatchewan, Canada; Fargo, North Dakota; Clemson, South Carolina
Dr. Dil Thavarajah is a Professor of Pulse Quality and Nutritional Breeding in the Department of Plant and Environmental Sciences at Clemson University. She is a Clemson University School of Health Faculty Research Scholar. She earned her Ph.D. in Plant Sciences from the University of Saskatchewan in Canada. Before coming to Clemson, Thavarajah worked in the Canadian lentil breeding and biofortification program at the University of Saskatchewan, Canada, and established the Pulse Quality and Utilization laboratory at North Dakota State University. Her current research centers on finding whole-food-based solutions to combat global “hidden hunger” – micronutrient malnutrition, obesity, and overweight using pulse breeding and genetic approaches to increase the nutrition quality of seeds. Thavarajah is internationally recognized as a leader in pulse biofortification, especially for minerals and protein. She is an honorary visiting lecturer at the University of Peradeniya, Sri Lanka, and a key research partner to the International Center for Agricultural Research in the Dry Areas (ICARDA) to release biofortified lentil cultivars for Africa and Asia. Thavarajah won the 2023 Godley-Snell Award for Excellence in Agriculture Research and 2022 for the FoodShot Global Price for her precision protein research.
Emerson Shipe
Professor Emeritus of Agronomy, (Soybean Breeding). Part-time Res. Assoc., Pulse Nutritional Breeding Program.
Dr. Shipe is a former soybean pulse breeder at Clemson University. He led the soybean breeding program from 1980 until 2012. Dr. Emerson Shipe’s role within the program is to provide invaluable advice and assistance in organic and conventional pulse crop breeding efforts. His desire to continue learning and educating others has brought him back into the pulse breeding world, however, this time with an emphasis on field pea and lentil crops.
Nathan Johnson
Research Scientist- Bioinformatics
Northern Minnesota
In 2018, Johnson completed his B.A. in Pastoral Ministry from Moody Bible Institute in Chicago. After returning to the sciences, he accepted the opportunity to pursue a graduate degree at Clemson University, studying plant breeding and genetics. Johnson’s research focuses on prebiotic carbohydrates and protein quality in lentil. Dr. Johnson completed his doctoral program in August 2022, working on developing genetic resources and rapid analysis methods to breed more nutritious and climate resilient lentil varieties.
Priyanka Joshi
Post Doctoral Fellow
Bhopal and Hyderbad, India; Washington State, USA
Dr. Priyanka Joshi, a Fulbright Fellow & Cultural Ambassador-USA (Washington State University and the USDA)-2019-20 and MP Young Scientist Awardee-2017 with more than ten years of work experience in international and national public crop breeding & product development programs for Legume and Millet crops as a Crop Breeder. Dr. Joshi significantly contributed in the development, release, and notification of eight chickpea varieties including first machanical harvest variety, and first green seeded variety of chickpea for Central India as an Associate Breeder. Dr. Joshi completed her Ph.D. with specialization in Chickpea Breeding and Genetics, M.Sc. in Genetics, and B.Sc. in Biotechnology from Barkatullah University, India. She worked at ICRISAT-HQ in the Global Research Program- Accelerated Crop Improvement before coming to Clemson University to continue her research passion of pulse crops improvement including biofortification
Thava Thavarajah
Chemistry Research Scientist
Sri Lanka
Thava attended the University of Peradeniya in Sri Lanka where he earned his undergraduate degree. He then went on to receive his PHD from University of Saskatchewan in Canada. He specializes in chemistry sciences. Within the lab, Thava plays a valuable role assisting in chemical analysis and enforcing and emphasizing safety procedures in the laboratory.
Tristan Lawrence
Lawrence graduated from Clemson University in 2018 with a B.S. in Agronomy and a minor in Plant Pathology. Upon graduation, he joined Dr. Thavarajah’s Vegetable and Pulse Quality and Nutrition Team at Clemson University. Tristan’s role within the program consists of overseeing and maintaining all research field trials, data collection, greenhouse and breeding activities, nutritional quality analysis, and crossing/hybridization for the development of enhanced and biofortified varieties. Lawrence’s enthusiasm for environmentally friendly and sustainable agriculture goes far beyond the breeding program. His passion for sustainable practices seamlessly integrates into his daily life, reflecting a genuine dedication to positively impacting agriculture and promoting a greener, more sustainable future.
Adam Kay
Phenotyping Lab Manager
Travelers Rest, SC
Adam graduated from Clemson University with a Bachelor of Science (B.S.) in Plant and Environmental Sciences, with a concentration in Agricultural Biotechnology. Adam is dedicated to his work with the lab. Adam enjoys his responsibilities with in the lab team, and wears many ‘hats’. He specializes in, but is not limited to, maintaining and managing all Laboratory research, protocols, and procedures.
Richard Baker
Research Associate
Mooresville, North Carolina
Richard Baker graduated from Presbyterian College, located in Clinton, South Carolina, where he earned his Bachelors degree in Biology. In 1973, he began working at Clemson University. Baker joined the department of Plant Pathology and Physiology. His role within the lab group depends on where he is needed most. He plays a valuable role in assisting lab members in various aspects in the field, crop house, and greenhouses.
Elizabeht Beane
Communications Manager
Washington, D.C.
Beane earned her B.S. from Clemson University in Communications and a minor in Sustainability, in May 2017. She joined Dr. Thavarajah’s program as Communications Manager in early 2022. Beane advocates for a healthy, active, and sustainable plant based food system, both in the United States and globally. She became a vegetarian in the summer of 2016, when she made the decision to stop contributing to the meat industry completely due to it’s devastating environmental impacts.
Sonia Salaria
Doctoral Student- Lentil Breeding and Genetics
Punjab, India
Sonia Salaria completed her B.Sc. and Masters in Agricultural Sciences at Punjab Agricultural University in Ludhiana, India. Majoring in Plant Breeding and Genetics, with a minor in Biotechnology. Sonia came to Clemson University in Fall 2021, where she is currently working towards her Ph.D. Her research focuses on nutritional enhancement of lentils grown under organic conditions and the development of nutritionally rich lentils with higher concentrations of protein and S- containing amino acids.
Mark Dempsey
Doctoral Student- Lentil Breeding and Genetics
Asheville, NC
Mark earned his B.S. in Environmental Biology from Appalachian State University in North Carolina. He continued his studies in ecology, earning a masters degree in Soil Microbiology from Miami University in Ohio. After his masters, he worked for more than 10 years in agricultural research and technical assistance at Penn State and the Carolina Farm Stewardship Association. Mark is currently in his third year as a doctoral student at Clemson University. He is researching the adaptability of lentils to Southeastern soils and climate, with a focus on stress tolerance and prebiotic carbohydrates.
Amod Madurapperumage
Doctoral Student- Phenomics and UAV
Sri Lanka
Amod is originally from Sri Lanka where he completed a B.S. in Chemical Sciences from the Institute of Chemistry Ceylon in 2019. Soon after, he joined Dr. Dil Thavarajah’s program in pulse quality and nutritional breeding. He is passionate about applying his knowledge of chemistry to study agricultural traits at the molecular level. His current research is developing a high-throughput analysis pipeline for seed composition traits in pulse crops by incorporating machine learning into chemometric techniques.
Nathan Windsor
Doctoral Student- Pea Breeding and Genetics
Greenville, SC
Nathan Windsor is recent graduate of Clemson University (class of 2023) earning his B.S in Plant and Environmental Sciences. Windsor has been a part of Clemson’s pulse breeding program since 2021 serving initially as the group’s undergraduate intern. During this time, Windsor was trained on many aspects of plant breeding including field and greenhouse care as well as data collection and analysis. Windsor worked primarily with the FTIR machine for data collection. Since graduation, Windsor has joined the program as a doctoral student focusing on dry pea breeding. His project will focus on the protein quality, quantity, and digestibility of dry peas.
Ash Terry
PES, Undergraduate Research Intern
Florence, South Carolina
Ash is a senior undergraduate studying Plant and Environmental Science with a concentration in Agricultural Biotechnology. In the lab, their current research is on assessing chickpea varieties for adaptability to South Carolina and nutritional quality. In addition, they also help the lab with greenhouse research.
Collaborators & advisors
Shiv Kumar Agrawal
Food Legume Breeder; Internataion Center for Agricultural Research in the Dry Areas (ICARDA)
SK.Agrawal@cgiar.org
Thava attended the University of Peradeniya in Sri Lanka where he earned his undergraduate degree. He then went on to receive his PHD from University of Saskatchewan in Canada. He specializes in chemistry sciences. Within the lab, Thava plays a valuable role assisting in chemical analysis and enforcing and emphasizing safety procedures in the laboratory.
Diego Rubiales
Spanish National Research Council, CSIC
Institute for Sustainable Agricullture (IAS)
Cordoba, Spain
Diego Rubiales is a Full Professor at the Institute for Sustainable Agriculture, CSIC- IAS, Córdoba, Spain. His research interests include legume and cereal breeding for disease resistance. He has supervised 30 PhDs. He has been President of the International Legume Society and of the European one, and member of the Ex.Com of the Int. Parasitic Plant Society. Diego Rubiales has extensive experience in coordination of research (18 international and 18 Spanish projects).
Lucas Boatwright
CORETVA
Lucas Boatwright is a Computational Biologist. He graduated from Samford University, with a BASc in Biology/Biological Sciences. He received his MSc in Molecular Biology from the University of Alabama in Birmingham. He then went on to earn his PhD and Post-doc from University of Florida in Botany/Plant Biology and Bioinformatics science, respectively. Boatwright’s role with in the lab includes; graduate student supervision, genomic and phenomic data management, database development, and manuscript preparation.
Sara Eckhouse
Executive Director, FoodShot Global
Sara served as Senior Advisor to Secretary Tom Vilsack at the U.S. Department of Agriculture, focusing on local and regional food systems, organic agriculture, and healthy food access. At USDA, Sara worked with a range of stakeholders to identify existing programs and develop new tools to support local, organic, and sustainable agriculture. Sara worked in the Obama White House in the Office of Legislative Affairs, and as a Field Organizer for the 2008 Obama Presidential Campaign. She graduated magna cum laude from Harvard College.
Gerald F. Combs, Jr
Jean Mayer USDA Human Nutrition Research Center on Aging at Tufts University
Professor of Nutrition Emeritus, Cornell University
Gerald Combs Jr. currently holds the position of Senior Scientist at the “Jean Mayer USDA Human Nutrition Research Center on Aging” at Tufts University in Massachusetts.
Erin Rees Clayton
Good Food Institute
Erin is Scientific Research Advisor for the Good Food Institute (GFI). Erin works with GFI’s Science and Technology team to identify critical research needs in the alternative protein field, to inspire researchers in academia and the private sector to apply their expertise to these research questions, and to mobilize funding for alternative protein research. Erin was a research faculty member at the University of Michigan School of Public Health. She recieved her bachelors degree from DePauw University in Chemistry.
Doug Moser
Founder and Owner of “Clearwater Country Foods”
Genesee, Idaho
Ashley Rawl
Director of Sales, Marketing, and Product Development, Walter P Rawl & Sons, Inc.
Pelion, South Carolina
Thava Thavarajah
Chemistry Research Scientist
Sri Lanka
Thava attended the University of Peradeniya in Sri Lanka where he earned his undergraduate degree. He then went on to receive his PHD from University of Saskatchewan in Canada. He specializes in chemistry sciences. Within the lab, Thava plays a valuable role assisting in chemical analysis and enforcing and emphasizing safety procedures in the laboratory.
Alumni
Tony Reda
Masters Student- Graduated August 2022
Boone Jones
Undergraduate Student Graduated May 2022
Sarah Powers
Doctoral Student (Ph.D.) Graduated May 2020
